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← 1949 1948 1947 1946 1945 1950 in Wales → 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955
Centuries:	18th 19th 20th 21st
Decades:	1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s
See also:	List of years in Wales Timeline of Welsh history 1950 in The United Kingdom Scotland Elsewhere

This article is about the particular significance of the year 1950 to Wales and its people.

Incumbents

• Archbishop of Wales – John Morgan, Bishop of Llandaff
• Archdruid of the National Eisteddfod of Wales
  • Wil Ifan (outgoing)
  • Cynan (incoming)

Events

• 23 February – 1950 United Kingdom general election: For the first time ever, the Labour Party contests all Parliamentary seats in Wales. Following the election, Wales has 27 Labour MPs, 4 Liberals, 3 Conservatives and one National Liberal/Conservative.
  • The University of Wales seat is abolished at the dissolution, W. J. Gruffydd having been the last holder.
  • Roderic Bowen is re-elected for Cardiganshire, with the largest Liberal majority in the country.
  • David Ormsby-Gore, the future Lord Harlech, becomes MP for Oswestry.
  • Lynn Ungoed-Thomas, following the abolition of his Llandaff and Barry constituency, is elected MP for Leicester North East.
  • Roy Jenkins, whose Southwark seat has been abolished, is elected for Birmingham Stechford.
  • Elwyn Jones becomes MP for West Ham South.
  • Following the election, Ness Edwards becomes Postmaster-General. During his time in the office, he introduces the greetings telegram.
  • Abertillery's Labour MP, George Daggar, dies on 14 October, to be replaced by Llywelyn Williams.
• 12 March – Llandow air disaster: 80 of the 83 people on board an Avro Tudor V aircraft are killed when it crashes on approach to Llandow in Glamorgan, making it the world's worst air disaster at this time.
• 30 March – William Havard is elected Bishop of St David's.
• 1 June – The Welsh Air Service, the world's first scheduled helicopter service, begins operating between Cardiff, Wrexham and Liverpool.
• 27 August – Six people are killed in a rail collision at Penmaenmawr railway station.
• 9 September – In Swansea, following heavy rain, three houses collapse, killing seven people.
• Ysgol Syr Thomas Jones opens in Amlwch on Anglesey as Britain's first purpose-built comprehensive school.
• Maes Hyfryd and Bryn Teg housing estates at Beaumaris, designed by Colwyn Foulkes, are built.
• Glanllyn is acquired as a permanent site for meetings of Urdd Gobaith Cymru.
• In the Honours lists
  • Physicist Ezer Griffiths is awarded the O.B.E.
  • Agriculturist Thomas James Jenkin is awarded the C.B.E.
  • Industrialist Herbert Henry Merrett is knighted.
• Margaret Haig Thomas, Viscountess Rhondda, becomes President of University College, Cardiff.

Arts and literature

• 21 February – Dylan Thomas arrives in the United States, his first visit to America.
• The first Welsh Drama Festival is held.
• American photojournalist W. Eugene Smith visits the UK to take photographs of working-class life; three of those published are of the South Wales valleys.

Awards

• National Eisteddfod of Wales (held in Caerphilly) (first "all-Welsh" Eisteddfod)
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Chair – Gwilym Tilsley
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Crown – Euros Bowen
• National Eisteddfod of Wales: Prose Medal – withheld

New books

English language

• Sir Leonard Twiston Davies – Welsh furniture: an introduction
• Kathleen Freeman – Greek City States
• Llywelyn Wyn Griffith – The Welsh
• Elisabeth Inglis-Jones – Peacocks in Paradise
• Thomas Jones (T. J.) – Welsh Broth
• Richard Llewellyn – A Few Flowers for Shiner
• V. E. Nash-Williams – The Early Christian Monuments of Wales
• Harold Henry Rowley – The Growth of the Old Testament
• Bertrand Russell – Unpopular Essays
• Raymond Williams – Reading and Criticism

Welsh language

• Ambrose Bebb – Machlud yr Oesoedd Canol
• Aneirin Talfan Davies – Blodeugerdd o englynion
• Edward Morgan Humphreys – Gwŷr enwog gynt
• Edgar Phillips – Caniadau Trefîn
• Arthur Wade-Evans – Coll Prydain
• David Pryse Williams – Canmlwyddiant Libanus ... braslun o'r hanes
• William Crwys Williams – Pedair Pennod

Music

• Harry Parr Davies – Dear Miss Phoebe (musical)
• Arwel Hughes – Dewi Sant (Saint David) (oratorio)
• Grace Williams – Three Traditional Ballads
• W. S. Gwynn Williams – Breuddwyd Glyndwr

Film

• Glyn Houston makes his film debut in The Blue Lamp, which also stars Meredith Edwards and guest stars Tessie O'Shea.
• Ray Milland stars in Copper Canyon and A Woman of Distinction.

Sports

• Boxing
  • 13 September – Eddie Thomas beats Cliff Curvis at St Helens to become British welterweight champion.
• Football
  • 27 October – Wales international Trevor Ford becomes the most expensive footballer in British history after joining Sunderland for £30,000.
• Rugby union – Wales win their fourth Grand Slam.
• Bowls – The Welsh Ladies Indoor Bowling Association is founded.

Births

• 23 January – John Greaves, Welsh bass player and songwriter
• 7 February – Dai Havard MP, politician
• 16 February (in Nairobi) – Peter Hain MP, politician
• 11 March – Terry Cooper, footballer
• 18 March – Lorraine Barrett AM, politician
• 27 March – Terry Yorath, footballer and football manager
• 3 May – Mary Hopkin, singer
• 5 May (in Saint Kitts) – Pat Thomas, boxer
• 24 May – Geoff Ellis, cricketer
• 26 May – Myron Wyn Evans, chemist (died 2019)
• 2 June – Jonathan Evans MEP, businessman and politician
• 14 June – Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury
• 25 August (in Dublin) – Brian Gibbons AM, politician
• 8 September – Martyn Woodroffe, swimmer
• 10 September – Tich Gwilym, guitarist (d. 2005)
• 11 October – Robert Pugh, actor
• 16 November – Chris O'Brien, rugby league player
• 28 November – Meic Povey, screenwriter, playwright and actor (d. 2017)
• 8 December – Stephen Richards, judge
• 10 December – John Parsons, footballer

Deaths

• 23 January – Jack Rhapps, dual-code international rugby player, 73
• 13 February – Rees Howells, missionary and founder of the Bible College at Swansea, 70
• 28 February – David Lewis Prosser, Archbishop of Wales, 81
• 9 March – Timothy Evans, wrongly executed for murder, 35
• 15 March – Sir Wilfrid Lewis, judge
• 12 April – Joe Rees, rugby union player, 56
• 29 April – Wallace Watts, Wales international rugby union player, 80
• 15 May – David Edwardes Davies, Bishop of Bangor, 70
• 21 June – General Sir Henry ap Rhys Pryce, officer in the Indian Army, 75
• 23 June – Joseph Harry, minister and poet, 86
• 29 June – H. A. Gwynne, author and newspaper editor, 84
• 2 July – Henry Haydn Jones MP, politician, 86
• 5 July – John Hughes, footballer, 73
• 30 August – Morgan Morgan-Owen, footballer, 73
• 30 August – Ralph Hancock, landscape gardener, 57
• 19 September – David Jones, archdeacon of Carmarthen, 75
• 14 October – George Daggar MP, politician, 71
• 28 October – Alis Mallt Williams, novelist, 83
• 21 November – Hugh Emyr Davies, poet, 72

See also

• 1950 in Northern Ireland

References

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• 1950 in Wales
• 1950 by country
• 1950 in the United Kingdom
• Years of the 20th century in Wales
• 1950 in Europe
• 1950s in Wales